Professional Learning Current Reality and GSAPS

Kelvin Pieze

PL & Technology Innovation

Kennesaw State University

Vision

Sequoyah Middle School (SMS) is guided by a vision statement which states that "The mission of Sequoyah Middle School is

to be accountable to all stakeholders for providing a globally competitive education that empowers students to achieve academic and

personal goals and to become college and career ready, productive, responsible citizens." (Sequoyah Middle School Improvement

Plan, 2017). This vision statement is aligned with the vision statement of Clayton County Public Schools (CCPS) which is "The vision

of Clayton County Public Schools is to be a district of excellence preparing all students to live and compete successfully in a global

society. (Clayton County Schools Academic Achievement Plan, 2017) All CCPS schools are expected to model their visions and

missions statement after the districts vision and mission statement. Sequoyah Middle Schools' instructional technology plan is adopted

and mimics the instructional technology plan and technology mission of CCPS. Sequoyah's instructional staff has access to multiple

forms of educational technology, which includes but is not limited to computer labs, computer laptop carts, Chromebook carts, digital

whiteboards, class response systems, and online study tools. Also, all CCPS teachers and administrators are issued personal laptops to

complete work-related duties such as taking attendance, sending and responding to emails, and completing compliance reports.

Dr. Sonjia Bennings, an assistant principal of Sequoyah Middle School, stated that one of the focus-goals this year put forth by

the school's leadership team as stated in the school's vision statement is to get Sequoyah's students "college and career ready."

Working toward this goal Sequoyah's administration has emphasized the need for technology infusion into learning task and lessons.

Teachers, at Sequoyah, are now required to use technology in their teaching at minimum twice a week and indicate that use in their

lesson plans.

Needs Assessment
 The professional development needs of the faculty and staff at Sequoyah Middle is less data-driven and more data-informed.

Through data collection, such as teacher surveys and request, Infinite Campus reports, administrative observations and walk-throughs,

and Edutrax reports, the administration makes decisions on what professional development is needed. "The data gathered and analyzed

by the administrative team is looked at holistically, and not as the leading factor in offering professional development to teachers,"

stated Dr. Bennings. Teachers who want additional professional development opportunities can attend face-to-face and online

professional learning classes through the S. Truett Cathy Professional Learning Center (PLC). Once a month, Clayton County Public

Schools has built in the master schedule a professional learning day for teachers. On this day, students get out of school early, so

teachers and administrators can meet as a staff and have county mandated professional development. These sessions, generally have an

agenda directed by the school district, are mandatory for all staff, and last three hours. On days after a school break, teachers also

participate in county-wide professional development with teachers from other schools that teach the same subject. These professional

learning days are used to discuss topics and issues relevant to the attending teachers' particular subjects. The administrative staff at

Sequoyah Middle tries not to use teachers' planning periods to hold professional development sessions, but on occasions must use

planning periods to disseminate information that is time sensitive.

Professional Learning

Sequoyah Middle School has a comprehensive professional development plan that is denoted in Sequoyah's school

improvement plan. The school improvement plan calls for collaborative weekly grade-level, by-weekly subject-area, and monthly staff

meetings. Most professional development, at SMS, is conducted in a collaborative setting. The grade-level meetings are led by the

grade-level chair and the grade-level administrator. The topics of these meetings are usually grade-level specific, but general school
topics are sometimes discussed. The subject-area meetings are guided by district-level site facilitators. These site facilitators are

assigned to several schools around the district and specialize in one subject area, be it Mathematics, Science, English/Language Arts,

or Social Studies. The site facilitators provide professional development and support in the areas of (a) content knowledge, (b)

technology integration, (c) classroom management, (d) deconstructing the standard, and (e) assessment, and data analysis. Though the

site facilitators do travel from school-site to school-site, they are assigned to a specific school once a week to provide support to any

teacher that needs help. The staff meetings are led by Sequoyah's administration. These meetings are used for whole-group staff

development. The focus of these meetings includes but are not limited to (a) lesson planning, (b) use of non-subject specific

technology tools, (c) book studies and discussions, and (d) Georgia Milestones Assessment System (GMAS) testing. During these

meetings, teachers have the opportunity to bounce ideas off each other and get feedback from there colleagues.

Instructional technology staff development is sometimes conducted by the school's technology contact, who also teaches a full

class load. These staff development opportunities are held after-school and are strictly voluntary. Dr. Bennings stated, "Teachers are

not required to attend, unless they have been placed on a professional development plan (PDP) for technology integration, by the

school's administration." (K. Pieze, personal communication, January 2018). The attendance at these meetings is usually low, with no

more than five teachers attending. Often, the attending teachers are in their first or second year of teaching.

Alignment

Using Sequoyah's Comprehensive School Improvement Plan as a guide, the administration team develops and offer

professional learning opportunities for the staff. The plan set-forth action steps/task to be taken to ensure teachers are well prepared to

meet the goals of SMS's vision and mission. These steps comprise tasks such as off-campus professional development, co-teaching

sessions, and veteran/new teacher mentoring.

 Teachers are given the opportunity to attend conferences such as the Georgia Educational Technology Conference (GaETC)

and the WIDA Consortium. During these types of conferences, teachers learn from experts in the field of teaching and learning, and

language acquisition. Staff members also participate in co-teaching mentoring opportunities on a semester basis. At least once a

semester, teachers are required to collaborate and team-teach cross-curriculum lessons. Students seem to enjoy these lessons because

they make connections between the different subjects they are being taught.

Sequoyah's school improvement plan has several goals, one of which is goal 6, which is geared towards the recruitment and

retention of highly qualified and effective staff members. To reach this goal, Sequoyah's administrators have put into place a

mentoring program for all new teachers to the school. In this program, mentors and mentees meet regularly to discuss issues and

discuss the implementations of lessons. Veteran teachers also assist the teachers they are mentoring with technology issues they may

be having.

Funding

Professional development at Sequoyah Middle School is funded by Title-I funds and funding request to the district's

professional learning center. In years past, Sequoyah was given a budget to pay for professional learning opportunities for teachers and

staff, but due to current district policy changes, request for professional development funding must now be made to the PLC in writing

with a purpose and rationale on how the professional development will affect student achievement. Sequoyah Middle also has another

source of funding, which comes from its Title-I budget. The school's administration has some discretion on how the Title-I budget is

spent, but all allotted money must be spent on the students or programs for student achievement. Title-I funds are used for professional

development, technology purchases, material purchases, and to pay the salaries of some non-instructional staff members. Title-I

funding is dependent on the number of students receiving free or reduced lunch, which is all of the students at Sequoyah Middle
School. While the current Title-I budget, for the district, is not yet available the budget for the fiscal year of 2017 was, $21,152,695.

(Fiscal Year 2017 Budget, 2017)

Funds for teacher incentives are raised through a combination of teacher-exclusive fundraisers and donations from partners-in-

education. Teachers have the opportunity to buy lunches and school paraphernalia with all revenues going to programs for teachers at

Sequoyah. Local businesses also donate items, such as snack foods, to the school for teacher consumption. These items are given to

teachers during professional development meetings and teacher appreciation week.

Diversity

Sequoyah Middle School has a diverse student population and because of this, care is taken to address the needs of all students.

Professional development is taught to teachers to meet the needs of the Special Education student population and the English

Language Learners (ELL) population throughout the year. General education teachers and connection teachers, physical education,

band, etc., all receive professional development on strategies on how to implement students' Individual Educational Plans (IEPs). This

training is continuous, and special education teachers are always available to further assist teachers in implementing effective

instructional methods. Teachers also receive yearly district mandated ELL training. This professional development is conducted by

the ELL teachers and encompasses training in instructional strategies, cultural awareness, and language acquisition. Teachers also

receive instruction on incorporating the different cultural backgrounds of their students into their lessons.

Collaboration

Teachers at Sequoyah Middle School participate in collaborative planning throughout the school year. Collaborative planning

takes place twice a week on Tuesdays and Thursdays during the teachers' planning periods. As mentioned previously, the collaborative

planning meetings are conducted by grade-level and by subject area. Teachers use these meetings to discuss classroom issues, to

brainstorm, to present student test data and curriculum plan. Subject-area meetings are led by the school's instructional site facilitators.
The site facilitators support teachers in their classroom instruction and breaking down of the standard. Teachers also participate in

monthly data talks. During these data talks, teachers present their student's unit test or chapter quiz data to the grade level. As part of

these data talks, teachers receive feedback from their colleagues and review action plans to increase student achievement. Teachers

also meet weekly by grade-level. During these meetings, teachers discuss across curriculum instructional strategies and issues

prevalent to their particular grade-level. As a check and balance, collaborative planning meetings are documented by the grade-level

chairperson or the subject-area lead teacher and submitted to the school's administration. This documentation is used by the school's

administration as evidence of collaboration in the teachers' Teacher Keys Effectiveness System evaluation.

Evaluation

The effectiveness of the professional development that is conducted at Sequoyah Middle School is evaluated several ways.

Administrators conduct walkthroughs of classes on a weekly basis, in addition to conducting three formal and three informal

observations of teachers throughout the school year. After the observations are conducted, teachers meet with the school's

administration to discuss what was observed and the areas of which need improvement. At a school level, district-level administrators

conduct bi-annual school focus walks to access if the school is in line with the district's vision and mission. Focus walks are conducted

by area superintendents and content-area supervisors, and the results of these focus walks are shared in a formal report with the

school's administration. Data obtained from walkthroughs, observations, and focus walks is used to gauge if the professional

development being delivered, is effective in raising student achievement.

 References

Fiscal Year 2017 Budget Summary and Background Information. (n.d.). Retrieved January 25, 2018, from
https://www.bing.com/cr?IG=DDA299E686194408ACD9CAE6C75C1BFD&CID=28202AF1A31B61AA09862173A2B4609B&rd=
1&h=wJfnIhhINGr_pyvwd9tCdM22RsoAe56YiR0USjOyed8&v=1&r=https%3a%2f%2fwww2.ed.gov%2fabout%2foverview%2fbu
dget%2fbudget17%2fsummary%2f17summary.pdf&p=DevEx,5067.1
Running head: CURRENT REALITY AND GSAPS 9

PROFESSIONAL LEARNING

The means by which teachers, administrators, and other staff acquire, enhance, and refine

the knowledge, skills, practices, and dispositions necessary to create and support high levels of

learning for all students

Professional Learning Standard 1: Aligns professional learning with needs identified

through analysis of a variety of data

Level 4 Level 3 Level 2 Level 1

Not
Exemplary Operational Emerging Evident

Professional Professional Professional Professional

learning needs are learning needs are learning needs are learning needs are
identified and identified through a identified using limited identified using little or
differentiated through a collaborative analysis sources of data. no data.
collaborative analysis process using a variety
process using a variety of data (e.g., student
of data (e.g., student achievement data,
achievement data, examination of student
examination of student work, process data,
work, process data, teacher and leader
teacher and leader effectiveness data,
effectiveness data, action research data,
action research data, perception data from
perception data from students, staff, and
students, staff, and families).
families). Ongoing
support is provided
through differentiated
professional learning.

EVIDENCE: – Data analyzed from administrative walkthroughs, observations, and focus

walks is used to guide professional learning at Sequoyah Middle. Upon the evaluation of the data, the
administrative staff develops professional learning sessions for staff members. Also, the administrative
team monitors Infinite Campus, EduTrax, and County Unit test data to determine what professional
development is needed. Teachers can request professional development training on a need basis
anytime from the administrative team. (K. Pieze, personal communication, January, 2018).
CURRENT REALITY AND GSAPS 10

RECOMMENDATIONS: It is recommended that student achievement data be analyzed and

shared every chapter quiz or test. The sharing of this data can help catch downward trends in student
achievement before it gets started. Also, teachers should be surveyed three time a school year
(beginning, mid, and end), to assess their professional learning needs. The data from the survey should
be used to plan teacher professional development.
CURRENT REALITY AND GSAPS 11

Professional Learning Standard 2: Establishes a culture of collaboration among

administrators and staff to enhance individual and collective performance

Level 4 Level 3 Level 2 Level 1

Not
Exemplary Operational Emerging Evident

Administrator Administrator Administrator Administrator

s and staff, as a s and staff routinely s and staff routinely s and staff routinely
foundational practice, collaborate to collaborate to collaborate to
consistently improve individual improve individual improve individual
collaborate to support and collective and collective and collective
leadership and performance (e.g., performance (e.g., performance (e.g.,
personal construct knowledge, construct knowledge, construct knowledge,
accountability and to acquire skills, refine acquire skills, refine acquire skills, refine
enhance individual practice, provide practice, provide practice, provide
and collective feedback). feedback). feedback).
performance (e.g.,
construct knowledge,
acquire skills, refine
practice, provide
feedback).
Teachers
conduct action
research and assume
ownership of
professional learning
processes.

EVIDENCE: – Teachers participate in monthly data-talks with site facilitators and

school administrators to analyze test data and share progress on student achievement.
Administrators meet weekly with grade levels to provide feedback during planning periods.
Site facilitators conduct bi-monthly meetings with subject-area teachers to review district
expectations. (K. Pieze, personal communication, January, 2018).

RECOMMENDATIONS: It is recommended that school administrators meet with

connections teachers to review course quiz and test data. School administrators should visit
connection classes more often and not just to do teacher observations.
CURRENT REALITY AND GSAPS 12

Professional Learning Standard 3: Defines expectations for implementing

professional learning

Level 4 Level 3 Level 2 Level 1

Not
Exemplary Operational Emerging Evident

Administrator Administrator Administrator Administrator

s, teacher leaders, or s, teacher leaders, or s, teacher leaders, or s, teacher leaders, or
both consistently both regularly define both occasionally both rarely, if ever,
define expectations expectations for the define expectations define expectations
for the implementation of for the for the
implementation of professional learning. implementation of implementation of
professional learning, professional learning. professional learning.
including details
regarding the stages
of implementation
and how monitoring
will occur as
implementation
progresses.

EVIDENCE: The expectations for professional learning is defined by the school’s

administration. Professional learning is a part of the school’s school improvement plan, but
participation in professional learning is only occasionally enforced. Professional learning
participation is tracked by sign-in sheets which are uploaded to a shared professional learning
Google drive. (K. Pieze, personal communication, January, 2018).

RECOMMENDATIONS: It is recommended that teachers be required to submit evidence

of active participation in professional learning sessions conducted by the school. Administrators
should recommend to teachers, professional learning classes being offered at the PLC that may
increase student achievement. Teachers should give feedback to school administrators on
professional learning they receive.
CURRENT REALITY AND GSAPS 13

Professional Learning Standard 4: Uses multiple professional learning designs to

support the various learning needs of the staff

Level 4 Level 3 Level 2 Level 1

Not
Exemplary Operational Emerging Evident

Staff Staff Some staff Staff

members actively members actively members are engaged members receive
participate in job- participate in in professional single, stand-alone
embedded professional learning, learning that makes professional learning
professional learning most of which is job- use of more than one events that are
that engages embedded, which learning design to informational and
collaborative teams includes multiple address their mostly large-group
in a variety of designs (e.g., identified needs. presentation designs.
appropriate learning collaborative lesson
designs (e.g., study, analysis of
collaborative lesson student work,
study, analysis of problem-solving
student work, sessions, curriculum
problem solving development,
sessions, curriculum coursework, action
development, research, classroom
coursework, action observations, online
research, classroom networks) to support
observations, online their various learning
networks). needs. Professional
Professional learning learning includes
includes extensive follow-up with
follow-up with feedback and
descriptive feedback coaching.
and coaching.

EVIDENCE: Grade-level meeting with school administrators are held on Tuesdays were
as content-level meetings are held on Thursdays with site-facilitators. The dominate form of
professional learning is collaborative whole-group sessions, but recently the school’s
administration has started a professional learning book study, which the entire staff is participating
in. The professional learning needs of the teachers are determined by the administrative staff.
Teachers receive professional learning through face-to-face, coaching, online, and group sessions.
(K. Pieze, personal communication, January, 2018).

RECOMMENDATIONS: Just like students, teachers learn in a multitude of ways.

Professional learning should be offered in several ways such as, by subject-area, online, whole
CURRENT REALITY AND GSAPS 14

group, and face-to face. Teacher should also be encouraged to do walk-throughs of other teachers
classes during their planning periods.
CURRENT REALITY AND GSAPS 15

Professional Learning Standard 5: Allocates resources and establishes systems to

support and sustain effective professional learning

Level 4 Level 3 Level 2 Level 1

Not
Exemplary Operational Emerging Evident

Extensive Adequate Some Few, if any,

resources (e.g., resources (e.g., resources and systems resources and systems
substitute teachers, substitute teachers, are allocated to are provided to
materials, handouts, materials, handouts, support and sustain support and sustain
tools, stipends, tools, stipends, professional learning. professional learning.
facilitators, technology) facilitators, technology)
and systems (e.g., and systems (e.g.,
conducive schedules, conducive schedules,
adequate collaborative adequate collaborative
time, model classrooms) time, model classrooms)
are allocated to support are in place to support
and sustain effective and sustain professional
professional learning. learning.
Opportunities to practice
skills, receive follow-up,
feedback, and coaching
are provided to support
the effectiveness of
professional learning.

EVIDENCE: Professional learning is supported by funds provided by the district’s

professional learning center and the school’s Title-I budget. While the use of Title-I funds is up to the
discretion of the administrators, Title-I funds spent on professional learning generally go toward
paying for the substitute teachers of teachers who are attending professional learning sessions on or off
campus. Funds can also be requested from the PLC for professional learning. Teachers also have
access to a resource room, were student achievement data is displayed and a library of professional
learning resources are housed. The district’s technology department also provides technology related
resources, such as online tutorials and links to free educational resources. (K. Pieze, personal
communication, January, 2018).

RECOMMENDATIONS: It is recommended that teachers have the opportunity to attend

professional development at other schools. Teachers should also be given the opportunity to attend
educational conferences and be reimbursed by the district for any cost they incur. Model classroom
should also be developed on all grade levels to show teachers what classroom expectations are
expected.
CURRENT REALITY AND GSAPS 16

Professional Learning Standard 6: Monitors and evaluates the impact of professional

learning on staff practices and student learning

Level 4 Level 3 Level 2 Level 1

Not
Exemplary Operational Emerging Evident

Monitoring Monitoring Monitoring Monitoring

and evaluating the and evaluating the and evaluating the and evaluating the
impact of impact of impact of impact of
professional learning professional learning professional learning professional learning
on staff practices and on staff practices and on staff practices on staff practices
increases in student student learning occurs sporadically. occurs rarely, if ever.
learning occurs occurs routinely.
extensively.
Evaluation results are
used to identify and
implement processes
to extend student
learning.

EVIDENCE: Teachers are asked for feedback after most professional development
sessions. At all county-mandated professional development sessions, participants fill out an
anonymous survey, providing feed back to the professional-development facilitator and the
district’s professional learning center. (K. Pieze, personal communication, January, 2018).

RECOMMENDATIONS: It is recommended that teachers show evidence-of-use of

professional learning instruction and resources in their lesson plans. Teachers should be
encouraged to upload videos of their classroom instruction using what they have learned in their
professional learning sessions to the school’s administration. Data from student tests should be
used to evaluate if more professional learning training is needed in a specific area.
CURRENT REALITY AND GSAPS 17

KSU ITEC Professional Learning Standard: Professional learning reinforces

educators’ understanding and use of strategies for promoting equity and high expectations for
all students, application of research-based teaching strategies and assessment processes, and
involvement of families and other stakeholders in promoting student learning.

Level 4 Level 3 Level 2 Level 1

Not
Exemplary Operational Emerging Evident
Classroom Classroom Classroom Classroom
practices (e.g., practices of most practices of some practices reflect little
considering interests,
backgrounds, strengths,
teachers reflect skill in teachers reflect or no evidence of
and preferences to communicating high evidence of teachers’ teachers’ training in
provide meaningful, expectations for each training in understanding the
relevant lessons and student and adjusting understanding the impact that attitudes
assess student progress, classroom activities to impact that attitudes regarding race,
differentiating meet student needs. regarding race,
instruction, and
disabilities,
Respect for students’ disabilities, background, culture,
nurturing student
cultures and life background, culture, high expectations,
capacity for self-
experiences is evident high expectations, and
management) of all and social class of
teachers reflect an through the social class of both
both students and
emotionally and emotionally and students and teachers
teachers have on the
physically safe physically safe have on the teaching
environment where learning environment and learning process. teaching and learning
respect and appreciation where students of process.
for a diverse population
is evident. There are
diverse backgrounds
high achievement and experiences are
expectations for all taught the school code
students and teachers. of conduct (customs)
The principal and other to help them be
leaders provide successful in the
professional learning for school context.
teachers lacking
understanding of the
impact that attitudes
regarding race,
disabilities, background,
culture, high
expectations, and social
class of both students
and teachers have on the
teaching and learning
process.

EVIDENCE: Teachers at Sequoyah Middle School receive continues training throughout

the year to meet and exceed the needs of Students with Disabilities and English Language
Learners. Teachers are trained how to implement individual Educational Plans (IEPs) and how to
CURRENT REALITY AND GSAPS 18

integrate the diverse cultural backgrounds of their students into their lessons. (K. Pieze, personal
communication, January, 2018).

RECOMMENDATIONS: Students of all cultures should be celebrated and care should be

taken to recognize the diversity of students. The customs and history of Sequoyah’s student
population should be taught to the entire student body, so all cultural backgrounds can be
appreciated and respected.